Peruvian native chili peppers (Capsicum spp.): A comprehensive review of their diversity, phytochemical richness, industrial potential, and future perspectives

Peru is one of the countries with the greatest diversity of native chili peppers, which make a significant contribution to the highly valued gastronomy of this nation. However, the use of these chili peppers remains localized, resulting in a limited number of studies focused on these species, which restricts their industrial utilization and increases the risk of extinction. For this reason, this review addresses topics ranging from their geographical distribution and genetic resources (encompassing national collections such as INIA with 712 accessions within a global germplasm context including the WVC with 8,264 accessions) to their industrial applications, including morphological characteristics, sensory profiles, and chemical composition. It was observed that native Peruvian chili peppers have the potential to be used in the development of pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food products, due to their content of compounds with biological activity such as capsaicinoids, carotenoids, phenolic compounds, vitamins, and minerals; they also present a wide range of pungency levels according to the Scoville scale. Finally, a bibliometric analysis was conducted using Bibliometrix and VOSviewer, where it was found that despite an increase in publications in recent years, native Peruvian chili peppers are still poorly represented in international scientific databases. Overall, this work addresses important information for the sustainable valorization and conservation of Peruvian Capsicum genetic resources, as it highlights its potential as a source of bioactive compounds to be used in different fields of industry.